


When In Rome

by Bluebox_Parchment



Category: Supernatural, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Conventions, Established Relationship, Jus in Bello Convention, Kissing, M/M, Post-Canon, if you struggle with rpf then this might just be the fic for you!, j2m said 1520? idk her, post 15x20 stupidity, reference to real events, super mega gay turbo hell, though there are some allusions to established cockles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:14:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27882821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bluebox_Parchment/pseuds/Bluebox_Parchment
Summary: It's been over a year since they last did a convention and for some hateful reason, Misha is first up on stage. It's hell. Super Mega Gay Turbo Hell, because people just will not stop bringing up the shitfest of a finale. And then of course, Jared and Jensen decide to crash the panel.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Jensen Ackles/Misha Collins
Comments: 25
Kudos: 185





	When In Rome

**Author's Note:**

> Look, you can probably justs pretend this is Dean and Cas if you really wanted to. Though why you wouldn't want to embrace Cockles is beyond me?  
> Legit cannot believe I finally caved and wrote RPF. Only took me 7 years to get here. Welp.

It's weird as shit being at a convention now that the show is over. If he's being honest, he wasn't really sure how this was gonna pan out after the absolute shitfest that was the finale and the subsequent reactions within the fandom. He'd not felt this nervous about getting up on stage in front of fans since his first ever con back in ‘09. he knocked back a shot of whiskey and really fucking wished they hadn't put him up there on his own without reinforcement.

'You got this, Misha,' Rob told him, giving him a fortifying pat on the shoulder.

'And if it sounds like you're floundering, one of us'll rescue you,' Rich chimes in, pushing another shot into his hand.

He knocks that back too, and grounds himself with the knowledge that none of them are gonna let him break his NDA. Nearly a year later and WB still had their balls in a vice.

The sound of the crowd bursts into sharp relief as his handler beckons him forwards, holding out a mic.

He leaps up onto the stage and stage whispers into the mic, 'Hey Rome, long time no see.' The crowd somehow gets louder and, _ shit _ okay, there was a part of him that had definitely missed this. Over a year off the circuit, over a year since he wrapped filming... for all his nerves, the noise of the crowd seems to unshackle something from around his neck. Excitement flutters in his gut.

'It's... it's so strange being back,' he tells them once it quietens down and he's perched up on one of the bar stools. He hopes some honesty will help calm him. 'This is much more intimidating than talking into my wife's laptop.'

There's a ripple of laughter. He prattles on a little longer, tries not to feel like he's floundering and then looks to the left and prompts the girl in the Castiel dress to start off the questions.

'Hey Misha,' she says in accented English (Scandanavian maybe he thinks, his brain filing away some of her cadence for later use.) 'I love you, by the way. And I love Cas - thanks for his speech in 15-18 it was  _ so _ important.' _ Ah shit _ , he thinks, his stomach twisting awkwardly. Just what he'd been afraid of. 'We missed you in the finale - Cas deserved to be there - and there've been so many conflicting stories about it that... I was just wondering if maybe you could tell us anything about it?'

And just like that, it's like everyone in the room decided to collectively hold their breath. Where seconds before there was a vibrant thrum, now there's a silence so deafening it might as well've been Jensen's social media presence after episode 20 aired. He gives a strangled laugh into the microphone. Of  _ course  _ the first fucking question had to be that.

'Well,' he starts, before promptly choking on his own tongue. God. He knows he needs to toe the party line:  _ Covid _ this and  _ time restraints _ that. Going where the story took us - to a satisfying conclusion to a long running 15 years, but he just can't. And he knows he can’t say that, not after what had happened with Charlie. He can't lie to these people who've waited over a year to be here. 'I am, I'm so happy that you enjoyed Cas' speech in episode 18. Me and Bobo - Robert Berens, the writer of episode 18 - we went back and forth a few times in the lead up to the script going out. It really meant a lot to us to get it just right.' He scrubs a hand over the back of his neck. He knows he should tackle the actual question part but his palms are starting to sweat. He thumbs at the ring on his left hand, twists it a little to ground himself and adds, 'I wish I could've been there too.'

_ That _ was as close as he dared get.

He turns to the other side of the room and prompts the next fan. 'Hi Misha! So good to see you again after so long! You were talking to Michael Sheen during lockdown and you referenced that 'we' had an episode and a half left to shoot and I was just -' Jesus  _ fuck _ this was Hell. Pure and simple. This was hell. But the girl at the mic just ploughs right on and Misha decides that actually no. This wasn’t just Hell. This was Super Mega Gay Turbo Hell.

The prospect of another half an hour of this makes him want to claw right out of his skin.

He manages to get through the question without shooting himself in the foot. The next is a little reprieve, a question on what was his favourite episode to film. His knee jerk choice is to say 18, given the work he, Jensen and Rich had poured into it. Hell, he  _ was _ proud of that. But he really can't do that right now. Too much like getting too close to an open flame. 'I'm gonna have to say the French Mistake,' he says and the audience laughs. 'Getting to play myself was refreshing. Jared definitely didn't fondle my genitals  _ nearly _ as much that week either.' There's a ripple of giggles. 'Plus it was nice to have Genevieve back on set, even if it was just for a couple days. But uh - I also had a lot of fun with the Scooby Doo episode. We uh - that's to say, Jared, Jensen and I all grew up watching Scooby Doo and getting to do the voice work for that was probably a highlight of my career. Not _ quite _ as good as finding out I trended above the US election but-' Ah shit, somehow he managed to wind up right back here and he only had himself to blame.

'Hi Misha!' the next person sounds a little breathless. 'It's... it's not a question but I just want to thank you so much for listening to the fans in the wake of the “They Silenced You” campaign.' Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. 'I know things started off a little rocky -' that was certainly  _ one _ word for it, '-but your words of affirmation really do mean a lot to so many of us.'

He smooths his fingers across his forehead, they really weren't gonna let him off the hook with this, were they? 'Yeah, I uh -' Fuck, he's drowning. Where the fuck was Rich? So much for coming to his rescue. '15-18 was, was really important to me. and and -'

' _ Mr Collins _ ?' the voice that speaks into the microphone on the other side of the audience is put-on, high pitched and distinctly Jared. There's a whole heap of laughter and cheering as the rest of the crowd catch on. For once, Misha's glad of the bright lights. 'Mr Collins, I was just wondering what you think Castiel would do when he sees Sam and Dean in heaven again?' Jared giggles into the mic, a put-on, breathy thing that makes him sound uncomfortably close to being a teenage girl. 

He taps his chin and says, ‘Probably ignore them both, I reckon.’

Jared gasps right into the mic. ‘I can understand him ignoring Dean but Sam is  _ obviously _ his favourite so-'

'Hmm, I don't think so,' Misha says automatically. 'Honestly, given how Cas sacrificed his life for the Winchesters and then neither of them bothered to fucking mention him again, I reckon he's feeling a little bitter. Plus Cas died to save Dean and then Dean died like... a week later so that was fucking pointless, right?'

The noise Jared makes into the mic is inhuman. It takes a few seconds for Misha's brain to catch up with what his mouth just said and then he's staring out at the crowd, mouth hanging open as the lot of them shriek and cheer. Jared, it turns out, is leading the cheering and clapping.

And then, because this panel is already a fucking disaster, another voice comes over the speakers. ' _ So _ , Cas is just gonna ghost Dean?' Fucking Jensen. 'See, you're the reason they all think Dean sucks.'

'He does,' Jared stage whispers into his mic. 'Often. On his knees.'

Misha scrubs a hand down his face to hide his stupid grin. The crowd screams even louder.

'If Cas was so fucking concerned about keeping Dean alive, he coulda headed down and healed Dean from that  _ stupid  _ bit of rebar,' Jensen can't seem to keep the bitterness from his voice and Misha has an overwhelming desire to reach his hand out, lace their fingers together and soothe him. He finds he's breathing a little easier all of a sudden. Of course Jared and Jensen weren't gonna leave him to flounder alone. Of course the three of them weren't gonna try and avoid the stupid fucking elephant in the room. 'Another thing,' Jensen continues, and Misha is now acutely aware of the way Jensen is stalking across the stage behind him. 'Why is it Cas only ever said 'I love you' when he was about to fucking die? S'enough to give anyone a complex. The fuck was Dean supposed to do with that, huh?'

'Not pretend like he didn't exist afterwards,' he says sharply.

'Huh,' Jensen says. He's close now. He's still not in Misha's line of sight, not even his periphery, but after thirteen goddamned years he's fairly certain he can predict the way Jensen likes to move across a stage. He can see it in the way the crowd is giggling quietly, the occasional shush breaking through the clamour as the fans try desperately to hear every word. 'It's not Dean's fault they cut you outta the finale.'

There's a collective in-take of breath and Misha knows this is the closest Jensen's ever gotten to outright spilling what went down with the last two episodes. He swallows thickly and makes eye contact with Jared out in the audience. Jared's eyes are bugged in concern; it's one thing to be a little less than enthusiastic, quite another for them to start spilling all the behind-the-scenes decisions. 'So,' Misha posits, trying to keep the tremor from his tone. 'If Dean had been able to respond to Cas,' he finally moves from his chair and looks at Jensen, 'what exactly would he have said?'

He hates the way Jensen is staring him down - not because it's a bad look. In fact it's the complete opposite. Jens has that look in his eyes that suggests he's about to eat him alive. Fuck.

'See, I'm not sure Dean'd say anything,' Jensen says. And before Misha can answer, before he can do much of anything, Jensen moves.

He watches the entire thing unfold in slow motion: Jensen dropping his mic down onto Misha's vacated chair, his hands reaching for Misha's head and waist, the freckles that dust the bridge of Jensen's nose, his thick lashes fluttering semi-shut, the way his breath ghosts across Misha's mouth before Jensen's lips are pressed against his. He closes his eyes automatically and just rolls with it. He doesn't even try to fight it when Jensen's tongue sweeps across the seam of his lips and fucks into Misha's mouth, filthy and desperate.

It lasts only a couple of seconds, Misha's teeth nibbling on Jensen's lower lip, muscle memory pure and simple.

It's not until he's being hoisted back upright that he even realises Jensen dipped him in the first place. The noise the crowd is making could be described as deafening. There's someone whistling very loudly and experience tells him that it's Jared.

Misha stands shellshocked, gaping at Jensen like an absolute moron. There's a dull thud followed by a slight instance of feedback as a mic hits the floor. Jensen has this shit eating grin plastered across his face which has the added effect of making him look impossibly hotter. His eyes dart down to the stage where the mic had hit and flick back up.

It's not often that misha gets left speechless.  _ Fucking Jensen _ . And he'd thought the bear underwear had been bad.

Misha darts his tongue out to wet his lips, still unable to tear his eyes away from Jensen. 'Are you shitting me, Jackles?' he says, knowing his voice won't carry over the deafening noise still coming from the crowd.

Jensen gives an exaggerated shrug and props his chin on the head of the mic. He doesn't take his eyes from Misha.

And Misha knows - Lord does he know - that Jensen is checking to make sure he hasn't pushed too far. Sure, to the untrained eye he might look like he's being a cocky bastard (and he is, absolutely) but Misha knows him probably better than anyone, save Danneel, and there's now a cautious glint in those green eyes. Always the master of microexpressions. 

Misha scrubs a hand down his face and nods once with the motion, knowing that Jensen understands the gesture. He bends to pick up the mic, just as Jensen finally speaks into his own. 'I think,' he says, his voice pitched Dean-low for the first time in months, 'that that is what I’d do when I saw  _ Cas _ again.' He adds extra stress to the name - an attempt to add a veneer of distance between them and their characters.

Misha's heart thuds against his ribs, blood pumping in his ears. The sound of the Dean-voice sends a thrill of delight through him. He hadn't realised just how much he missed it.

Misha clears his throat, noticing for the first time in a while that the crowd has quietened down. He squints his eyes at Jensen and pitches his own voice as low as possible, ' _ Dean _ .' The sound the crowd makes is like a bomb going off.

Somehow, the tips of Jensen's ears flush as he fights the overwhelming urge to fold over flustered. Misha catches the hitched gasp that sounds through the mic. He's sure the audience do too. 'Cas.' And now Jensen does dip his head, delightfully bashful.

Misha takes a step forward, straight into Jensen's personal space. 'If you die again, I will kill you,' he says, grabbingJensen's chin and crushing their lips together. It's not the overly showy kiss Jensen had swept him into. No, this is bruising, claiming, something that would often precede Jensen willingly on his knees with his hands behind his back. He fights the instinct to fuck his tongue into Jensen's mouth, fights the urge to bite a bruise to that pouty bottom lip, but Jensen doesn't get the memo because he huffs out a breathy little whimper for Misha's ears only and fists his hands into the front of Misha's shirt.

'Dude! Slip him the tongue!' Jared's voice comes over the speakers loudly, reminding them that they're not only not alone, but also on stage in front of nearly a thousand people.

Jensen, Goddamn him, tries to lick his way into Misha's mouth, just as Misha puts a hand square on his chest and pushes him back lightly.

He staggers a step and blinks slowly, those pretty green eyes wide and doe-like. Fuck everything, Misha wants to go back to kissing him. The blood rushing to his cock is an all too uncomfortable reminder that they're still on stage. fuck. The screaming that had started to die down has ramped back up again. He can feel a flush creeping up the back of his neck, and he resists the urge to try and hide it with a swipe of his hand.

' _ Sam _ ,' Misha says into the mic instead, tilting his head out towards the crowd where Jared stands in the middle of the room watching the whole thing unfold with open joy all over his face. 'Forgive me but I won't be greeting you in the same manor.'

'Don't worry about it,  _ Cas _ ,' he says, also adding extra emphasis to the name. 'I know where that tongue has been and I don't want it anywhere near me.' He cackles right into the mic and there are even more loud woops from the crowd.

‘Ladies and Gentlemen, please join me in welcoming Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki to the stage!’ he says, snapping straight back into his convention persona.

Jared bounds through the crowd to much cheering, but Misha glances sideways towards Jensen. He’s currently lifting a couple plastic cups of whiskey from the hands jutting through the back curtain and he silently holds one out to Misha. Their eyes meet. Jensen is delightfully red as he takes a sip, speaking into the mic, ‘Ah, Roman apple juice, ain’t nothing like it.’ 

Misha holds Jensen’s gaze for a second, checking, making sure he was okay. The way Jensen’s eyes glitter in the stage lights tell Misha all he needs to know: Jensen is fine, more than fine, if not a little hard and flustered and desperate to blow off the rest of the panel so he could blow something else. Later would be fun, Misha thinks, lifting the whiskey up in salute. He winks at Jensen and says, straight into the mic, ‘When in Rome.’ 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to Brit for giving this a read through before I posted it. And thank you to you horny bastards on the Profound Bond discord's Cockles channel for egging me on to write this. It wouldn't exist without you. This is _entirely_ your fault.
> 
> If you too love Cockles and Destiel and are over 18, you can always come and join me and the rest of these assholes for fun :D  
> https://discord.gg/profoundbond


End file.
